FIELD OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates to orthodontic apparatuses for attachment to teeth, for the purpose of positioning or straightening the teeth, the latter with the use of applied forces.
In the past numerous devices have been proposed and produced, intended to be cemented or glued to teeth in the mouth to enable wires or springs and the like to be used for applying forces to certain teeth to correct alignment thereof.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,250,003 and 4,068,379 disclose examples of some of these prior bracket devices. The disclosed devices, while explaining certain improvements, had several drawbacks. For one thing, because of a faulty fit of the device to the variable tooth contour, voids or cavities often existed under the device after the attachment was effected. These voids required filling to avoid collection of food, and the practice was to apply a temporary filler thereto so as to present a smooth dentally acceptable surface.
In order to insure a strong bond of the bracket to the tooth, a base member was used which had appreciable surface area. The larger the surface area, the better the chances were for the bond to be effective. However, larger surface areas meant that the voids under the device also became larger, since the base portions of the brackets were rigid and not in conformance with the tooth contours.
In some instances this was overcome by the use of flexible bands which were wrapped around the tooth. However, this was not always feasible or practical, or comfortable to the patient.
The above disadvantages and drawbacks of prior orthodontic attachments for securement to teeth in the mouth are overcome by the present invention, and one object of the invention is to provide an improved orthodontic apparatus for attachment to teeth, which is readily adjustable prior to or during its securement thereof so as to enable a better fit to be had of the apparatus to the surface contours of the various kinds of teeth found in the mouth.
Another object of the invention is to provide an improved orthodontic apparatus as above set forth, which is especially simple and economical to produce.
A further object of the invention is to provide an improved apparatus in accordance with the foregoing, which is easy to adjust and which provides a greatly improved fit to tooth contours.
A feature of the invention resides in the improved apparatus as characterized, which effects an improved bond and adhesion of the apparatus to the tooth.
Another object of the invention is to provide an improved and simplified process by which an orthodontic apparatus is fitted and applied to a tooth so as to more closely conform to the tooth contour.
The above objectives are accomplished by an orthodontic bracket apparatus for attachment to a tooth, consisting of a flexible attachment pad having dimensions that are commensurate with a designated area of the tooth to which the apparatus is to be secured. The apparatus has a pair of brackets permanently mounted on adjoining areas at one side of the pad in spaced relation to each other, such brackets being maintained in their attached positions and separated by an elongate, narrow hinge portion of the pad, which portion is free from direct attachment to the brackets. The narrow hinge portion of the ductile pad enables an initial easy, relative arcuate adjusting movement of the brackets to be effected with respect to each other, thereby to obtain a closer fit of the entire pad to the surface contours of the tooth which is to have the apparatus affixed to its surface.